Thomas Boyd/The OregonianLaMichael James and the Ducks face a tough game this week at Stanford, and the distraction of LeGarrette Blount's possible return to the field.Oregon and Oregon State have little time to celebrate last weekend's victories as they look ahead to difficult road games in the Bay Area.

Oregon State faces a hot California team that has won three straight after a puzzling two-game slide against Oregon and USC.

The Golden Bears were picked by many as possible conference champions, and on paper they're formidable. Tailback Jahvid Best is one of the best big-play guys in college football when healthy. He left Cal's victory last Saturday at Arizona State with some sort of ankle problem.

Quarterback Kevin Riley had an excellent passing game against the Sun Devils, especially late in the fourth quarter when he marshaled the Bears on a clutch drive for the game-winning field goal.

Certainly OSU must play better pass defense against Cal. The Beavers blew a 16-point lead in the fourth quarter before James Rodgers rescued them on a touchdown-scoring end-around play.

The Oregon-Stanford game presents an interesting contrast in styles, with the uber-fast Ducks, their spread offense and their zone blitzing defense matched against a throwback Cardinal team that likes to pound the football on offense with tailback Toby Gerhart running behind blocking fullback Owen Marecic.

I think the Stanford's brute-force offense could give the Ducks problems early. But barring a spate of Oregon turnovers or injuries, I can't see Stanford's defense stopping the UO offense often enough to stay in the game. Once the Cardinal gets down by two or three TDs, coach Jim Harbaugh's team will have to abandon the sledgehammer running game. I think the final score will be one-sided.

The LeGarrette Blount decision could come down as early as today. It will be interesting to see if the Pac-10 hands out additional penalties. If it turns into a media circus, that could be a distraction. But UO coach Chip Kelly has done a good job of keeping his team focused on the upcoming opponent. I don't see that changing.

The links:

Bud Withers of the Seattle Times: The Ducks didn't just beat USC. That was a flaying with some significant long-term implications.

Motoya Nakamura/The OregonianOregon State's James Rodgers gets mobbed by teammates after scoring the game-winning touchdown against UCLA.Ted Miller of ESPN.com has the Ducks first, the Beavers fourth in his weekly power rankings.

Jon Wilner of the San Jose Mercury News: Cal and improving QB Kevin Riley face a big hurdle when the Beavers come to town.